Toddler Loses Vision After Contracting Rare Raccoon Disease

A Canadian toddler is battling blindness and other neurological problems after contracting a rare type of roundworm found in raccoons, The Hamilton Spectator reported Monday.

The boy has been in McMaster Children's Hospital in Hamilton, Ontario for the past two weeks, his parents told the newspaper.

The parents, who asked the newspaper to identify them by only their first names, Danielle and Josh, said their 14-month-old son seems to be gaining some strength from treatment, but is completely blind and cannot sit up on his own.

The city's public health department found 30-35 samples of raccoon feces in the family's backyard, according to the report.

The disease, which is contracted by ingesting roundworm eggs found in raccoon feces, is potentially fatal.

"It's very difficult seeing him like this," the boy's father said. "He's fighting and is in better spirits than he was ... the treatment they have him on is keeping it at bay — keeping it from killing him."